


Officer Down

by shadesquadvip1



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Ben loves Rey, Coffee, Devoted Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Donuts, F/M, Fluff, He is the other half of her soul, Hurt Ben Solo, Love, Modern AU, OTP Feels, Rey Needs A Hug, Reylo - Freeform, Reylo AU Week, Reylo Week 2020, Soft Ben, Very fluffy, ben loves his mom okay, ben's a police officer, medical scenes, rey's a paramedic, reylo au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-02
Updated: 2020-05-20
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:08:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,291
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23972788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shadesquadvip1/pseuds/shadesquadvip1
Summary: Rey's a paramedic and Ben is a police officer, they have been dancing around each other for months. They meet every week when Ben gets off to exchange coffee and donuts. Ben's never late, but this time he is...
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey & Ben Solo, Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 16
Kudos: 357
Collections: REYLO WEEK 2020





	1. Chapter 1

“You’re going to crack the windshield if you stare at it any harder” Rose teased. 

Rey let out a huff and twisted around in the seat. 

“Ben’s never late Rose.” 

Rose rolled her eyes and adjusted herself with her feet on the dash. 

“I’m sure he got held up on a call Rey” She paused a devilish grin spreading across her face 

“You know if you two would just get it over with and sleep with each other we wouldn’t have all this tension in the air every Monday.” 

Rey threw her an exasperated look. 

“Rose! We aren’t sleeping with each other, I barely know him, we are co-workers, sort of.” 

Rose wiggled her brow “So you’re telling me that if Officer Solo were to ask you on a date you’d say no?” 

Rey blushed furiously and glanced down at the Dunkin’ bag. 

“Well, I wouldn’t say no, that wouldn’t be very polite of me. He’s not terrible looking or anything.” 

Rose let out a snort “Oh PLEASE Rey I’ve never seen you eyeball a man harder in the ten years I’ve known you. Besides, I don’t blame you- he’s fit.” 

Rey was about to make a snarky comment back when the radio blared to life. 

Rig 2187 we have an officer down hostage situation proceed with caution suspect is not in custody- stand off in progress. 

Rey’s blood ran cold and she froze, Rose mutter “Oh shit” and grabbed at the receiver answering the call. She breezed through the checks and brought Rey back to her body with a sharp smack 

“We have to go” 

Rey gritted her teeth, faced the wheel and the engine roared to life. Rose patted her leg “We don’t know its him” She gripped the wheel until her knuckles were white, Ben’s never late... 

The street they turned onto was blocked and the scene was utter chaos, Rey had never responded to anything that was still in progress and the sheer number of police vehicles and the whirring helicopter above was an indication that things were definitely more serious than she had let her brain think. She couldn’t see Ben in the crowd of people but then again she couldn’t see who anyone was because they were all in SWAT gear and hunkered down behind cars. She scanned the crowd again looking for any sort of familiar face while Rose had already moved to the back to grab their bags. Her eyes landed on the back of Chief Skywalker’s head and it propelled her into action. She jumped out of the rig and grabbed her bag from Rose briskly walking towards what she assumed was some sort of command center. 

“Chief Skywalker we got the call, who’s injured? What’s going on?” The words tumbled out of her mouth faster than she anticipated. 

He nodded to the officer he was in conversation with and turned to face her. 

“Some asshole managed to find his ex wife and kids at the shelter- he’s got a bunch of hostages. Ben went in to try and negotiate we’ve got eyes on them but no way to take out the perp.” 

His and swept through his hair and Rey was barely listening because blood was rushing through her ears at an alarming rate. 

“From what we saw Ben took a hit in the leg, but he’s still alert in there, we are negotiating on getting him out, when we do he’ll need medical attention.” 

Rey had somehow forgotten english it seemed because all she could do was look at the Chief and try to breath. Rose pulled her from the trance by grabbing her by the shoulder and steering her away 

“Yes, sir!” she supplied to the Chief before pulling them away. 

All they could do was sit and wait and it felt like time was dragging like nails on a chalkboard. Rey couldn’t keep her leg from bouncing as she leaned against the front of the rig with Rose at her side.   
She shouldn’t be acting like this, he wasn’t her boyfriend, in fact he wasn’t anything more than a co-worker and Rey didn’t even know if he wanted anything more than that. He hadn’t asked her out and they had been doing this dance for months, maybe he just enjoyed having a friend, maybe he just enjoyed free doughnuts- I mean who didn’t enjoy free food?

Rey was pulled from her thoughts as several clicks happened in unison and it became deathly quiet around her. She looked towards the shelter doors and held her breath as the doors swung open. Ben stumbled out and he seemed okay, he didn’t have the SWAT gear on- just a vest and casual clothes. He must have been clocking out on his way to pick up her favorite java chip frappe when they got the call about the hostage situation. Of course Ben would have volunteered to stay and help, he was loyal to a fault. She wasn’t angry at him anymore as he eased his way down the stairs, his arms lifted above his head and he kept glancing back towards the door. Rey could barely make out a figure in all black with glaring orange hair holding tightly to what she assumed was a gun. He was just behind the doors so that the snipers across the street couldn’t get a shot off. She couldn’t help but notice that Ben was more pale than usual but that was to be expected. As he reached the bottom stair Rey’s ears were deafened by several pops and her eyes glazed over as she saw Ben’s face drop, he staggered for a moment before falling face forward his arms not even extended to catch himself. 

She didn’t realize the shriek had come from her mouth and she was already moving before two large arms wrapped around her from behind. 

“Rey, Rey calm down, you can’t go it’s not safe.” 

Finn had come out of nowhere and the gear he was wearing was digging into her back as she struggled against him. More pops went off around them and she was being held to the ground hot tears in her eyes. After what felt like an eternity Finn eased up from on top of her. She was dazed but scrambled up to her feet. 

“Not so fast, not until they give the all clear.” He head whipped around and she saw Rose was rising from the ground and dusting herself off. Rose reached for Rey and met her blurry eyes. 

“Rey, can you handle this? Do you need me to call another rig?” Rey blinked several times and inhaled through her nose. Ben needed her. She swallowed and steeled her insides and nodded. 

She turned and faced the scene and pushed down the waves of nausea that rolled over her. Ben was in the middle of the street, still face down, not moving and she could see blood pooling around him. Her instincts and training kicked in and she made her way forward with Rose behind her. The second that Chief Skywalker gave the signal the various SWAT members swarmed the building, Rey and Rose joining the charge. The closer she got to Ben the more her stomach sank- there was alot of blood. 

She dropped to her knees and was immediately in ‘EMT mode’ as Rose so fondly titled it. Finn and Poe were by their side awaiting Rey’s instructions. She saw two holes oozing thick sticky blood at a rate she didn’t like. She planted her face down on the concrete in front of Ben’s 

“Ben, can you hear me? Ben?” Nothing. She took a breath and returned to the wounds on his back. 

“Rose grab the Coag and get it into these wounds. She picked up Ben’s wrist gently and could feel his pulse strong but slow. 

“Finn- Poe bring the backboard quickly he’s losing alot of blood.” 

She notices the slight tremble in her fingers and goes back towards Ben’s face. She can see that there is a gash in his forehead, undoubtedly from falling on his face. She turned his arm over and began an IV craning her neck to see Finn and Poe coming towards her. 

“We’ve got to get him flipped over, on three, one, two, three” 

Ben was very large but the four of them flipped him easily onto the backboard. As soon as he was on the board his eyes fluttered and he groaned trying to lift his head which caused him to start coughing. Rey placed a hand on his chest “Hey, hey it’s alright, stay down you’re okay I’ve got you” Ben relaxed a little as his glazed eyes flitted across her face. She continued to feel across his chest and stomach checking for exit wounds but there were none to be found which gave Rey a new sense of urgency. Rose was at his left thigh securing a tourniquet Rey’s voice came out a little shaky and Rose met her stare. 

“Rose?” “His leg is okay, clean entry and exit wound, no arterial damage that I see” Rey nodded 

“We need to get going, grab the stretcher, I’ll be ready when you get back. Find someone to help us lift him.” Rose picked up on her urgency and sprinted off in the direction of the rig. 

Rey returned to Ben’s face which was a sickly grey color and she almost couldn’t stomach it. She checked out the gash on his forehead and determined it wouldn’t need stitches. She grabbed his wrist to check his pulse, gulping and looking up frantically for Rose as it had grown slower and fainter. 

“Ben?” she shook on his shoulder trying not to jostle him too much. His eyes fluttered open for a moment. 

“Ben can you keep your eyes open for me, please, I need to see your eyes.” 

He struggled for a few moments before blinking them open. The sight of them broke her, he looked so young, so scared. She grabbed his hand on instinct. 

“Hey, you’re okay. You’re going to be fine” He let out what she thought would have been a laugh if he could manage that but it died on his lips. 

“Rey, I- can you call my mom?” She saw tears well up in his eyes and she squeezed his hand tighter. 

“Of course, we will call her from the hospital” He shut his eyes and she started to panic a bit. 

“Hey Ben, eyes on me”. He met her gaze but she could tell he was struggling he tried to smile and she saw a bit of the dimples that she’d grown to love. 

“Will you tell her that I’m sorry, that I’m sorry I wasn’t there, she’ll know what I mean, and just that I love her so much.” 

Rey wasn’t unfamiliar with people feeling the need to say their goodbyes when they were severely injured as Ben was right now but she couldn’t deny that this was different and it was tearing her apart. 

“You’ll tell her yourself.” He let out a sigh and his grip relaxed a little in her hand. She panicked for a moment but could still feel his pulse and she let out a breath. 

Finn, Poe, and Rose finally returned and took their places on either side of Ben. They lifted him onto the stretcher easily and rushed towards the rig. Rey instructed Rose to drive as she climbed into the back. 

She attached the various wires to Ben’s chest and read off his vitals into the radio informing the hospital they were coming in with a critical trauma. She had placed an oxygen mask over his face, his stats were still dropping as they sped towards the hospital. She determined that he had to have some internal bleeding for that to be the case and the feeling of being sick passed over her again. She knew he had to be in pain so she prepared a small dose of morphine to help take the edge off, it was the least she could do. Before she could administer the dose he started pulling his mask off and trying to sit up. She put a hand on his chest 

“Woah woah woah there big guy, relax.” 

When she saw his eyes she knew something was wrong the panic as they darted back and forth at a rapid pace caused her to furrow her brow. His breath came out strained and his voice hoarse 

“Rey, Rey I can’t, my chest” he grabbed at his shirt and began coughing flecks of blood splattering out of his lips. Rey jumped into action 

“Okay okay, I’ve got you relax” she grabbed a stethoscope and brought it to his chest. His heart was beating fine and she could hear his left lung working, she moved to his right and realization struck her face. 

“Rose!” she shouted “what’s our ETA?” 

“Two minutes” she breathed thank the gods. 

She grabbed the radio and called into the hospital 

“Our critical has a collapsed lung, we are two minutes out, how should I proceed?” 

She was met with a calm voice and she didn’t understand how anyone could be calm right now, but then again nobody else was undoubtedly in love with Ben Solo whose lips were starting to lose their color. 

“We have the OR on standby 2187, intervene only if pressure drops significantly.” 

Rey confirmed the order and placed the radio down with a shaky hand, glancing up to the vitals, his pressure was holding but low. Ben’s eyes were closed again and Rey couldn’t do much- they were pulling into the bay. She grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze, leaning over and pressing a small kiss on his forehead before leaning her own against his. She let out a huff 

“Ben Solo, I swear if you make me have to start paying for my own frappe’s again I’ll never forgive you.” She paused and looked over his features- he almost looked like he was sleeping “Please, be okay, okay?” 

He didn’t respond but the back doors swung open and Rey assisted the doctors in getting the stretcher out and into the hospital. She watched them whisk him away and once he disappeared from sight she backed into the closest wall and sunk to the ground. 

Rose crouched in front of her gently placing an arm on her shoulder 

“He’s going to be okay Rey, you probably just saved his life.” 

Rey could hear her but there were no words she just shook her head and sank her face into her arms. She let out a sob, taking notice of her shaking body. Rose pulled her arms away 

“Nope, none of that, he’s going to be okay, let’s get you cleaned up.” Rey looked down at her hands and gagged at the sight of the blood. 

“Come on, up” Rose said pulling her from the floor. 

She shoved her into the closest bathroom and stood guard. Rey didn’t recognize herself in the mirror. She was a mess at best, hair disheveled, her eyes were rimmed red, her cheeks were blotchy. She leaned onto the sink heavily and let out another shaky breath. Blood swirled in the sink as she cleaned herself up. She splashed the cold water on her face and patted it dry with the coarse paper towels. She exited the bathroom and Rose was waiting with a sandwich and orange soda. She took them thankfully and Rose starting talking before she could even ask 

“He’s in surgery, it will be a while.” Rey nodded and flopped down into a chair cracking the soda open and chugging it down with no shame. 

“I called the Chief, you’ve got today and tomorrow off.” Rey nodded thanking her without words as she scarfed the sandwich down. 

She woke with an awful crick in her neck a few hours later but snapped up none the less as she came face to face with Chief Skywalker. 

“Uh- hello Sir” “Good Morning Rey” he supplied 

“Ben’s out of surgery, he’s stable. He’s been asking for you” She smoothed her hair 

“Oh, well that’s that’s great. Oh shit.” she smacked herself with her palm 

“I was supposed to call his mother when I got here” 

He waved his hand, “Don’t worry I’ve taken care of it, I’m sure my sister would kill me if I didn’t call her and let her know what happened. She’s on a flight now.” 

It took Rey a moment to let the words wash over her “Wait, Ben is your nephew?” 

A smile quirked across his face “Yep, he’s lived with me here since he was in high school” Rey smiled back at him 

“Well that’s a relief I would have felt awful if something would have happened and I didn’t get in touch with her.” Chief Skywalker shook his head 

“She’d have known anyways, I don’t know how but she always knew when he was in trouble, sometimes she would call me before I even had the chance to lecture Ben and send him to his room.” 

Rey smiled at that, she had only been interacting with Ben for a few months but she could see him having a wild streak, especially when he was younger. 

“Well, you can head down and see him, I’ve already seen him, beware though he’s a little loopy.” Rey giggled at that 

“Thank you Chief Skywalker” he nodded “Call me Luke, and look after the boy will you? Gods knows someone needs too.” 

Rey nodded and headed down the hallway. 

Ben looked like he was sleeping again but not in the I’m about to die kind of way and Rey breathed a sigh of relief. She approached quietly and took the chair that was already at his bedside careful to not wake him incase he was sleeping. 

“Ben?” she whispered taking his hand and giving it a squeeze. 

His eyes fluttered a bit and he let out a groan before opening them fully. He looked her up and down slowly and she offered a smile “Rey” he breathed his dimples boring into his cheeks. 

“Hey there, how are you feeling?” she asked thumbing over his hand gently. He glanced down at their hands, his grin growing wider. 

“I’d be better if I had my doughnuts.” 

She rolled her eyes “And I’d be better with a Java Chip Frappe, but here we are” letting the smirk grow across her face. 

He let out a small laugh before catching her gaze again giving her hand a squeeze. 

“Thank you Rey, you saved my life.” Her cheeks grew pink 

“It’s my job, besides your uncle says someone needs to start looking after you.” 

He closed his eyes and let out a sigh grumbling something about Luke being an old man. They were silent for a few beats as Rey raked over him and drank in the fact that he was there, living, breathing, and okay. His voice was soft and caught her off guard. 

“You’re beautiful” 

She let out a laugh “I’m a mess, most definitely not beautiful” she gestured at the uniform she was still wearing. Ben didn’t take his eyes off of her. 

“Rey, when I get out of here will you let me take you on a date?” Rey’s breath hitched and she grinned 

“Is this going to be our usual coffee and doughnut date?” He blinked at her slowly and lifted his hand brushing her cheek “No, this is going to be a proper date. I don’t know how I’ve waited this long to ask, but after today I’m not wasting anymore time.” 

Rey smiled at him softly “Ben, you don’t have to take me on a date if you don’t want to, you had a near death experience, don’t feel obligated to take me out...” she trailed off. 

Ben laid his head back on the pillows closing his eyes “Okay then” he said peeking out beneath his lashes catching Rey’s face fall. 

He lifted his head and gave her a devilish smile “Kidding, I’m kidding, I want to take you out Rey, I have been wanting too for months, I’m just an idiot.” 

Rey’s face grew warm again and she grinned 

“Well in that case, I guess you’re my idiot.” and she lifted his hand kissing his knuckles. 


	2. New York is a big place

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben you saved my life 
> 
> I was just returning the favor 
> 
> Guess that makes us even now

New York was a big place, Manhattan alone had a population of 1.6 million, but it still never surprised him how crazy things could get on his shift. When he heard about the potential bomb and resulting fire at the courthouse off of 51st street he was shocked. Anytime anyone mentioned the words bomb and fire all he could think about was 9/11 and it still took the breath out of his lungs like the ash did that day. He responds to the call despite the tremor in his hand because that’s his job and he takes his job very seriously. He arrived on the chaotic scene and had to take a few breaths before peeling himself out of the patrol car. He made it about three steps towards the scene when Finn jogged up to him covered in soot and out of breath. 

“Ben, shit, thank god you’re here.” Ben clapped Finn on the shoulder 

“Yeah man, I’m here, what’s going on?” Finn braced his hands on his knees to catch his breath.

“They think it was a bomb but they aren’t sure. There’s fire on floors 5 and 6, its spreading fast. We’ve got three teams helping clear out the building and doing crowd control. Fire and EMS are on level 5 and 4 trying to get the injured people out before the fire spreads.” 

Ben could feel his pulse quicken, it wasn’t the first time he had been around a burning building since that day, in fact he had been in and around several burning buildings since that day- it was almost sixteen years ago after all and even after years of therapy there was no way that he wouldn’t be transported back to that day every time he smells molten steel, ash, and smoke. He nods at Finn and strips off his uniform and vest. 

“I’ll head up to 3 and see what I can do.” 

As he approached the building the heat rolled over him in thick waves and his eyes were already beginning to water. People were still running out of the doors guided by other officers to a safe zone to the left. A triage area was set up just behind that and Ben recognized Rey and Rose’s rig just beyond that. As he entered the doors his eyes struggled to adjust to the darkness, only the emergency lights were on and they flickered as the building groaned. 

Ascending the stairs was a challenge as he assured people that they were close to the exit and just had to keep going. A few people stumbled down the stairs and he had to intervene to keep them from being trampled. He was soaked through his shirt in sweat and the air was getting thicker as he got higher. He got to the third floor and ran into Poe who was guiding several people in the direction of the stairs urging them to get on their hands and knees as the smoke continued to thicken. Ben had wrapped a handkerchief around his mouth and nose but it wasn’t doing much to help. 

“Poe, what can I do?” he raised his voice over the shouts of the people rushing by.

Poe’s eyes widened at the sight of him, his forehead was covered in black streaks of ash and he pulled the mask over his face with a quick yank . 

“Ben!” he beckoned him over.

“The fire took over the fifth floor, and the floor collapsed on the fourth its chaos up there. Some of the fire and EMS were still there when it fell through and there are more people still coming from up there. Take this, go up and see what we need to do, this smoke isn’t going to let up.”

Ben nodded and took the mask securing it and the tank on his back before making the climb up to the fourth floor. What had felt uncomfortably hot a few moments ago now felt like he was in an oven. The air was stinging and burning his skin. He ducked down to get to clearer air as he approached the door. 

“Hux!” he called out seeing the fireman on the floor. Hux turned to him and extended an arm pulling him in close. 

“There’s not many civilians left up here we need to pull out, Phasma and Pryde went in to find Rey and Rose, they were on the far side when the floor fell in and we can’t get them on radio.” 

Suddenly it was very cold where it had felt like he was burning alive only seconds ago. 

“Ben!” Hux’s harsh tone pulled him back. 

“Take this and you can go, be careful, and get out of there as soon as you find them!”

Ben took the flashlight and began to crawl forward trying to keep his hands from shaking. Of course Rey and Rose were up here, they wouldn’t have sat by at the triage, and they are senior EMS. Ben gave up on crawling when the air cleared somewhat, he realized because the windows he was near were all smashed open. He stood somewhat crouched down and called out 

“Rey, Rose, Phas, Pryde?! Where are you?!”

The floor itself wasn’t so large but there were several rooms they could be in and the building felt as if it would crumble at any moment.

“Here!” he almost didn’t hear it but then the faint sound of the emergency tone reached his ears. 

Back on his hands and knees he crawled forward and to the right nearly bumping into Phasma and Pryde. 

“Ben, fuck what are you doing here? You’ve got to get out of here, we’ve got to go the floor isn’t going to hold much longer.” 

Ben didn’t care about the warning 

“Where’s Rey?” Pryde dropped her head and Ben realized that they had Rose’s unconscious body between them. Phasma put a hand on his shoulder. 

“We couldn’t get them both, we tried but, Rey stayed behind she’s stuck, she knew we might not make it back for her, she knew the risk, she told us to take Rose. We couldn’t lose them both. I- I’m sorry” 

Ben couldn’t move, his breaths were coming out of his nostrils entirely too fast and he needed to calm down. 

“Where is she? Tell me Phas, I can get to her…” Phasma hesitated

“I, we can’t lose you too Ben, it’s not safe.” 

He grabbed her shoulders “If I don’t try I will never be able to live with myself, please”

She nodded “About thirty feet that way, there’s a door its open, the smoke is a bit clearer there, or at least it was. Take these”

She handed over her gloves and pointed behind them 

“Ben, come back out okay?” He nodded and didn’t waste a second more half crawling and stumbling in the direction of Rey.

She’s okay, she’s okay, it’s gonna be fine, we are gonna get out of here, and it’s going to be fine

When he saw the door his heart sank to his feet and he hit his knees using his should to jam it open further. The wood of the door searing his skin and he let out a curse but kept at it. When it was wide enough for him to get through he barreled in and it was eerily quiet.

“Rey?” he couldn’t keep his voice from cracking. He scanned the room with the flashlight finally seeing a glimpse of her hair in the back corner dangerously close to some flames that had begun to lick their way into the room. He reached her in three strides tossing everything out of his way. The heat of the fire made it hard to even get close to her and he could see where her face was beginning to blister on the side of her cheek

“Fuck, shit, okay” he scanned over her body and couldn’t tell if her chest was moving. He felt his stomach twist and turn but he pushed that thought aside and kept moving. Her leg was pinned under a desk and some metal that by the looks of it was dangerously hot. He couldn’t simply pull it off of her and they were running out of time. He felt the floor tremble at his feet. The gloves would be the only protection he had, he went around and ducked under the metal beam that was radiating heat careful not to touch it. From here he could lift the desk but without Rey conscious how could he move her leg which he could now see was completely crushed. It was better that she was out and couldn’t feel it he supposed. 

The building trembled again and he heard groans, creaks, and crashes further down the hall. He let out a breath and inhaled deeply, pulling at the desk and lifting it from her leg, he kicked her foot until her leg was clear of the desk and he dropped it inches from where her leg now rested. He was out of breath, it was so hot he felt like he’d been at the beach all day but never got the chance to cool off in the ocean. Except, it was worse than that, hotter than that, and everything around him was on fire. He didn’t waste time worrying about if Rey was in pain by the way he scooped her up and maneuvered back out of the room, he didn’t worry about jostling her as he descended down the stairs with her in his arms.

He couldn’t see clearly until he reached the second floor. As soon as he saw Poe he dropped to his knees and laid Rey on the ground. He ripped the mask off his face and dragged in harsh breaths. He didn’t register the fact that he’d been crying for the past five minutes as they had made their way down. Nor did he realize that it had only been five minutes because it had felt like an eternity. He heard Poe yell for assistance vaguely as he crashed his ear down onto Rey’s chest listening for anything that would bring him comfort.

He sat up and brushed her hair from her face careful not to touch her cheek that was burned. He could see now that her skin wasn’t the right color, that there were black stains under her nose. His fingers were trembling as he felt on her neck pushing harder than he needed too. Poe was across from him now and was grabbing at his hands gently. 

“Ben you have to let her go” his head snapped up to Poe and then back down to Rey. She looked like she had this morning almost, when he woke up and snuck out of the room to make breakfast. 

“No, please Poe, I can’t she can’t we were just-“a sob escaped his throat followed by several more.

Poe was beside him now still holding his hands and pulled him into an embrace. Ben wasn’t the one for touching other people, and he really only let Rey hug him, but he couldn’t fight against Poe right now he didn’t have the strength. Several people approached them on the stair well. Rey’s chief was one of them and he barked instructions to get her the hell out of the building. Ben jerked away from Poe and flung himself over Rey still sobbing. 

“No, please fuck, please don’t she’s okay, she’s okay.” 

Poe pulled him back and cupped his face 

“Ben you have to let them take her, come on, we can go too, they are going to do everything they can, you know that, now let’s go.” 

He stood and pulled Ben up slinging his arm around his shoulder. They followed everyone out of the building. The sunlight blinded him for a moment before things came back into a blurry focus. Finn came jogging up to them following the sight of Rey on a gurney with wide eyes. 

“Fuck, Poe? Ben? What happened?” 

Ben couldn’t respond, he couldn’t do anything, his whole body was shaking and Poe supporting him was the only reason he was still standing. Poe dragged a hand over his face 

“It’s Rey, it’s bad…” Finn’s head jerked back in the direction that he’d seen them taking her.

“We need to get him somewhere else, anywhere else.” 

Finn nodded and slung Ben’s other arm over his shoulder. Ben let them drag him off towards the triage zone and sit him on the bumper of a rig. Johanna approached them checking them all over for any damage. She stopped at Ben’s shoulder which had a nasty burn. 

“You’ll need to get that looked at Ben” he didn’t so much as acknowledge her. 

Finn cut in “I think he’s in shock, Rey’s hurt…” 

Johanna nodded and swallowed, they were all worried about Rey. Phasma and Pryde came over to the group. Phasma knelt down so that she was eye level with Ben. 

“You did it, you got her.” Ben looked up his face soaked with tears and red. He wiped his nose on his arm not caring about how gross it was.

“She wasn’t I couldn’t feel a pulse Phas, her leg… I – I –“

He started hyperventilating and sobbing Phasma was quick to grab the mask that Johanna had extended and held it to Ben’s face. 

“Hey, hey it’s okay, they got her, she’s already on her way to the hospital, I saw before they took her, she had a pulse, she’s alive okay?” 

Ben expected relief to wash over him but he just felt even more distraught. He wanted to be with her but he couldn’t stop his body from trembling, couldn’t breathe properly. Poe patted his back, 

“Come on man breathe” 

Ben nodded forcing himself to calm down. Johanna gave the group a look

“Ben, come on and get in, you’ve got to get that shoulder looked at.” 

“Finn, are you good to stay here? I’ll ride with Ben?” 

Poe helped Ben stand and climb into the rig. 

“We have to stay here, but keep us updated” Pryde said. 

Poe nodded and climbed into the back with Ben resting a hand on his back. Johanna was already settled in up front and the bus lurched forward as the back doors swung shut.

Ben hadn’t really gotten a hold of himself during the ride to the emergency room but he could breathe again. He could feel the stinging on his shoulder from the burn. He still had to squeeze his hands together tightly to keep them from shaking.

The ER was chaos with multiple victims from the explosion filling the beds. Ben’s ears were ringing and he scanned the room for Rey as Johanna led him down a hallway away from the open floor. She placed him in a room and he sat on the bed his leg tapping impatiently. 

When she left the room he finally met Poe’s eyes. “Rey?” his voice was hoarse.

“I don’t know Ben, I can go ask?” he nodded

“Please.”  
Poe swung the door open and exited the room swiftly. 

Ben wanted to lie back but his shoulder was protesting any movement. The adrenaline that was keeping him going was slowly ebbing away. His head was pounding and he felt like he would be sick. It felt like he had been in the room for ages he was up and pacing around trying not to think about the worst when the code came across the speakers. He didn’t know that it was for Rey but he did, somehow deep in his chest it felt like when he had been shot last year. All the breath that he had been holding suddenly left him. He jerked the door open and went down the hallway and back to the main area. It was still chaos and he had to remind himself that he probably hadn’t been in that room for hours. 

He spotted Poe with his face in his hand leaning against a wall across from a room that had dozens of people rushing in and out of it. 

“Poe?” he thought it came out as a whisper but it was loud enough to catch Poe’s attention. His face dropped and he snapped his neck back and forth between the room and Ben. 

Ben cleared the distance faster than he should have been able to move and caught a glimpse inside the room where Rey’s unmistakable freckled skin and chestnut hair confirmed his fears. There were so many tubes and wires attached to her she didn’t look like herself. His eyes drifted up to the monitor and he knew what it meant when there was a flat line there. He looked back down and watched as a large man was leaning over her and pushing down on her chest. He knew he didn’t really hear it but he swore he heard her ribs snap under the pressure. 

Poe was wrapping his arms around him from behind and pulling him backwards. His uncle stepped in front of him and was taking up his vision, pushing on his shoulders in the direction Poe was pulling.

“Ben, you have got to calm down son, I know its Rey but you have to let them work.” 

Ben hadn’t thought he was causing any problems but he was suddenly aware that his voice was breaking and cracking while Rey’s name was falling from his lips. He was screaming and trying to get to her, he had to get in there and tell her that he loved her, that she could do this. She wasn’t always as confident as she seemed, she needed him. 

Somehow Luke and Poe had managed to get him back to the room he was in before. He grabbed the first thing he could and slung it at the wall letting out a sob. He fell down to his knees and Luke and Poe were beside him instantly pulling him up and onto the bed. 

A nurse came in and had a needle “just something to help you relax” 

Ben didn’t want to relax, he didn’t want to calm down. 

“No, no, please I can’t be asleep what if- what if?” 

he can’t say it and he breaks into more sobs. Luke nods to the nurse and holds Ben’s arm steady as the nurse plunges the needle into his arm. He is still crying but it becomes softer and slower. The nurse dresses his shoulder so that he can lay back in the bed. He sees Luke at his side, holding his hand and he thinks that he shouldn’t need someone to hold his hand, and if he did that someone should be Rey. His heart stutters at the thought of her and he blinks slowly before he lets himself fall into the dark.

He jolts awake and its pitch black. He can feel the cuff on his arm, his shoulder is aching, his wrist is itching from an IV that wasn’t there before. Everything hits him like a train and he’s panicking. He knows that they must be monitoring him closely because as soon as his heart rate picks up on the monitor a nurse comes in to check on him. 

“Mr. Solo, I’m Jessica I’m you’re nurse. Everything is fine, you are in the hospital, you have been asleep for several hours. Can I get you anything?” 

His eyes are wide and his breath is coming in and out of his nose quickly. He swallows down his anxiety before it can get the best of him. 

“I- I’m fine. My shoulder?” 

“Yes, you’ve got quite a nasty burn there but it should be fine in a few weeks. Your uncle is out in the waiting room, shall I let him in?”

Ben nods before resting back on the pillows. Luke appears a few moments later with relief on his face. He approaches the bed and places a hand on Ben’s good shoulder. 

“I’m glad you’re okay son, I’m glad you’re awake.” 

Ben met his eyes with his glassy ones and began to speak but Luke cut him off

“She’s alive Ben” 

he lets out a huff and rubs his eyes not stopping the tears. Luke pulls a chair up and sits at his side.

Normally, Ben isn’t too happy with the fact that his uncle is the chief of their department but he’s more than grateful now. He’s had the last two weeks off and he’s spent every moment by Rey’s side. She’s been in the ICU the whole time, she hasn’t woken up, and there have been a few scares. Today though, today they were going to let her wake up and he was going to be the first thing she saw. After the doctor administered the medication and instructed him that it was a waiting game he thanked him and waited. His leg wouldn’t stop bouncing and he worried that he might rub the skin on Rey’s knuckles raw with his thumb.

It was a little over an hour when he felt her hand tense in his. He snapped his head up from the mattress and called out to her softly gently squeezing her fingers 

“Rey, sweetheart, it’s me, it’s Ben. Can you hear me?” 

Her eye lids fluttered and his heard started racing as he grabbed for the remote and hit the call button. 

“That’s it sweetheart, open your eyes, you’re doing so well.”

He brought her hand to his lips and pressed softly. Her eyes came open this time, squinting at the harsh lights in the room. Ben couldn’t contain the grin that split across his face. The nurse arrived in the room followed by her doctor. She was clearly still hazy as to what was going on but she kept looking at Ben with those eyes and he returned her stare with as much love and comfort as he could muster. 

The doctor evaluated her and after a half hour of tests he decided she would be fit to move down from the ICU to a regular room. Ben felt tension that he didn’t know was there roll off of him in waves. He hadn’t let go of her hand, except when he had too. He gave it a squeeze and didn’t stop the tears that were pricking at his eyes.

After everyone left the room Rey caught his gaze and her voice came out scratchy “I love you.’ She rasped tears rolling down her cheeks. 

Ben didn’t hesitate, cupping her face and catching her lips. He kissed her as much as he could whispering I love you over and over again. Their tears were mixing and he could taste the salt on her lips. He pulled away and tucked her hair behind her ear. 

“I miss you so much.” His voice trembled as he took his seat. 

“I thought, I didn’t know if you would-“he can’t finish the sentence he doesn’t want to jinx anything, doesn’t want to speak anything like that into existence. 

Rey gave his hand a squeeze. “You were so brave, you saved my life.” 

He met her eyes and gave her a lopsided grin 

“I was only returning the favor” placing a gentle kiss on her hand. She grinned at that 

“Guess that makes us even” she smiled pulling his hand to her lips and placed a small kiss.


End file.
